The Backstory

This Summer, 2024, sucked. I had planned to be out busking, booking gigs for my new old soul band, booking gigs for Radio Joe and the Jazzbos and playing sideman gigs. Ahh the outdoors on a battery powered amp is so freeing! But one day in early May my lovely wife Susan and I were walking in Elm Creek Park when I noticed a familiar pain. Angina. In 1997 I’d had a triple bypass and had experience with this ache. So, I called the cardiologist. After several examinations and days of tests, I was determined to be at high risk for stroke and heart attack. I cancelled every gig I had. This was deeply disappointing to me. My heart had given me no signs of problems for a long time. 27 years to be exact. Emotionally I hit the wall. But I had to deal with it. I knew that if I played an all out energy gig I’d leave in an ambulance. I got on the schedule for an angiogram, (which is the only way the doctors can know for sure where the blockages are) and waited 2 weeks more. Then both my wife and I came down with Covid. It’s a nasty thing even if you get all the shots. Called the cardiologist, told them the situation and got rescheduled for August. No state fair gig for me this year. Then, I got lucky. The doctor put in 2 stents in a previously blocked artery, closed off a blocked bypass. I was back on the old highway. It could have went badly. For whatever reason, I get to have bonus miles. My thanks to those of you who prayed for me. Susan had a hard gig waiting to see if I’d get through it, while I waited on the operating table. My thanks to Susan. She is my best friend in the whole world. Now I’m back to rehearsing for a show on October 2nd at the Schooner Tavern. Thanks to Ivas Bryn for the gig. Sometimes you get thru.